mercredi n'etait pal mal.

today was great. i really bonded with the little boy. it was just me and him all day and we had a lot of fun. i think today was the first time i actually enjoyed spending time with the kids, so that's a milestone. i woke up, well actually i got up to pee (use the restroom, as my parents would prefer), and looked at my watch and i swear it said 6:00, so i was really mad at everyone for making so much noise because we had 2.5 hours til we had to wake up. so i think i gave the dad an angry look and went back to my room, but the noise kept getting louder and louder, so i looked at my watch again and realized i read it wrong. so i jumped outta bed and started my day.

the dad informed me that pottery is over, so i panicked a bit thinking that would mean 2 hours of unplanned time with the kids! but it turned out fine. gilles (the dad) told me he was taking iris to athletisme, but i was like oh no she has music now! i wish when they changed the kids' schedules, they'd tell me because im the one that needs to know. anyway, so me and the boy chilled til the dad came back. valere islearning about the milk industry in school, so his dad quizzed him on that while i worked on my french grammar. im working hard. then the dad went to sand the gates, the son went with him, an di went to do my own version of butts n guts. valere got tired of watching his dad, so he came to watch me, and i explained that he could watch but not interupt. he could also listen to my ipod and i gave him an exercise band if he wanted to join in. it was a lot of fun to have him in the room. hahah he loved spoon, which is one of my favorite bands, and he even tried the exercises. it was so cute.

then when i was done, i asked if he wanted to do one full out with me, so we went into the den with our exercise bands and did a segment. he LOVED it. then i went on youtube and pulled up kids yoga and we did sun salutations while singing. he wanted more and more. i loved that he was loving exercise. then we did qiqong, an ancient chinese martial art. hahah it was really funny because it was in chinese and it was this old guy in a kimono thing. haha the dad took a picture. then we ate scrambled eggs and tomatoes and cucumbers and bread and talked about how to defend yourself from elephants and alligators and sharks. when the dad ate the carambar for dessert (it's a cross between a tootsie and a sugar daddy), he told us the joke that was on the wrapper and for the SECOND DAY IN A ROW, i got the joke. i think that understanding jokes in other languages is one of the surest signs that you are getting a grasp on it.

then we pretended we were alligators and defended ourselves from each other and then went to pottery. i don't get good vibes from the instructor, so i havent returned. instead i went on a walk, got an espresso and read the paper, and then got my cowboy. we went to the library and then the dad picked me up to mail my package! i thought that was really nice. however, i had to remove the juice boxes of wine and my stereo because it was over the weight limit, so if your card says you get wine, you're not really gettin it. your loss, my GAIN! back to the library, i got dianna ross, otis redding, james brown, and some electronica for my itunes. we jammed to otis when we got back to the house.

haha then the girl came back and she was so happy and cute with her painted face. then they braided my hair in a bunch oflittle braids. then they had the idea to play family with me as the mom (that's a sign that they like me more!) and the boy was the baby and the girl wanted to be the squirrel. and the boy wanted to be fed....breast milk. i was like WHOOAAAA! we bottle feed, babe. haha ooh boy. then i cut his nails. and then i was done for the day.

i felt really good about my place in the family today or at least with the kids and the dad. the mom leaves just as im getting up and returns before dinner, which is when im usually done with the kids, so i really don't talk to her much. she's nice, but i just don't know her well.

on my walk, i went to the church and wrote yalls name in the petitions book. im not sure why because im not sure how i feel about that, but i think the more people that think about yall the better. i think positive regard is the most effective thing.

tomorrow i go with the elders to the art museum! yeehaW!

this whole france trip is such a growing experience, and it's hard but really good because i can't hide from anything im facing because there's nowhere to hide. it's just me, and owning up to your stuff sucks, but in the end, it's good. because when you have the power to overcome hardship inside yourself and you use it, it feels so awesome to completely embrace who you are, even if you don't like it all. that's one thing im afraid of about this trip. it's a big learning jump and i just hope that i can still relate to people the same way because some things that seemed so monumental to me before i left are becoming more trivial. the things my parents taught me when i was little are becoming more and more valuable:
actions speak louder than words.
if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all.
the pretty people that say ugly things will be ugly on the outside too one day, chels.
never lie because you can't keep track of them all.
live below your means.
ALWAYS be aware of your surroundings.

so i dunno. i know that always being at the bars would help me get through the day, but for what
? the next day is the same thing. that's another thing my parents taught me: you can't drink away or drug away your problems because they'll still be there when you come down. so i can't be a drunk at night because i still ahve the mornings and the afternoons and the evenings to deal with, and if im only looking forward ot my next drink ,then what kind of life is that? so here i am dealing with it all, sober. yeeehaw.

mmk well im going to go floss and brush my teeth. today i brushed my hair TWICE and it loved me.

bye papillions (butterflies)
chels